Ireland could not survive the wrath of Zimbabwean spinners on a dry surface and now they find themselves in a tricky situation. Not only do they have to win all their remaining matches, they’ll also have to take care of their Net Run Rate. Up against them next are Scotland, who are riding high with confidence. The two neighbor teams meet on 18th March at Harare Sports Club, Harare. Scotland are yet to be defeated in the tournament and a win here will take them in a position of advantage. A loss will mean curtains for Ireland.
Ireland
Ireland had a good start to the tournament, but their failure to deliver in the times of pressure has been the primary cause of their position in the points table. They lost two wickets in one over against West Indies and their batsmen weren’t able to survive against Zimbabwe on a slow and turning wicket.
Batting has been the Achilles’ heel for the Irishmen. While all of their batsmen have been amongst the runs, it has either been against the weak teams or without any partnerships. Paul Stirling and William Porterfield scored well in the final group game, but their performance against Zimbabwe was forgetful. Consistency has been their biggest problem and there couldn’t be a better time to sort it out than now.
Bowlers, on the other hand, have been pretty reliable and consistent. Boyd Rankin and Tim Murtagh have been lethal in the powerplay overs. Barry McCarthy hasn’t played many games in the tournament, but his overall ODI numbers are impressive. He has picked up 44 wickets in 21 matches at an average of a little under 24.
Ireland have played well, but their performance has deteriorated over the years. They haven’t been at their best, but they’ll have to be if they want to have a shot at main World Cup event.
Scotland
Barring the last two overs against Zimbabwe, there’s hardly anything that Scotland have done wrong in the tournament. They lost two wickets in quick succession against Zimbabwe because of which they are a point short.
Their campaign kickstarted when Calum McLeod smashed the Afghanistan bowlers to all parts of the ground and led the Scots to an unanticipated victory. Matthew Cross, Kyle Coetzer, and Ritchie Berrington joined the party in their remaining group games. Up until their last super six match where they smashed 322 against UAE, they were ruing the fact that their batsmen haven’t clicked together, but that was sorted in the previous match.
The performance of their seamers has been one of the major reasons for their success. The duo of Sharif and Wheal have been excellent up front. The off-spin of Michael Leask has troubled even the best in the business. Scotland have done exceedingly well in the tournament so far, but considering the experience of men in green, they’d have to be at their best when they face Ireland in their upcoming match.
Our Prediction
While Ireland been a better overall in head-to-head matches, Scotland have played excellent Cricket in this tournament. The situation for Scotland is similar to what it was for Zimbabwe a couple of days ago, as far as points table is concerned. Ireland have a strong powerplay bowling attach with Rankin and Murtagh, the trio of McLeod, Coetzer, and Cross have been terrific at the top for Scotland. Scotland are in terrific touch and appear to be having a better control of playing in these conditions and for those reasons, Scotland are more likely to win this important contest.
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